The Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on Ukraine’s Integration
into the EU, in cooperation with the UN Women in Ukraine and with the
support of the governments of Denmark and Sweden, discussed gender
equality in EU Integration.
The goal of the event was to raise the awareness of MPs and state servants
about their role in promoting gender equality, protecting rights and
expanding opportunities for women.
The participants discussed best practices of the EU member states, in
particular, regarding the analysis and monitoring of legislation, legal
approximation, as well as legislative initiatives aimed at achieving
gender equality.
The discussion was moderated by the Chair of the Committee on Ukraine's
Integration into the EU Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze and the first deputy
Chairman of the Committee Vadym Halaychuk. Members of the European
Parliament, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, representatives of embassies,
international development partners and civil society organisations took
part in the discussion.
Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze noted that after the start of Russia's war
against Ukraine awareness of the role of women was raised. “It is clear to
us that women are underrepresented in various areas of political and
economic life at the decision-making stage. Before the war, women made up
55% of the population of Ukraine. Therefore, we should use this potential
for the development and addressing challenges of our state,” said the
Chair of the Committee. She noted that Ukraine is currently at a very
important stage moving towards its strategic goals. “We have candidate
status, the decision of the European Council to start membership
negotiations with Ukraine was made, and now we are at the stage where we
are waiting for the approval of the negotiation framework with Ukraine. We
hope that we will be able to get this framework already in June so that we
can move forward. Gender equality is one of the important values in the
European Union. It must be reflected in our laws, rules and procedures,”
said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze. According to her, it is necessary to
improve procedures both in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and in the
Government with the involvement of civil society, which for many decades
was the only promotor of gender equality, and today is a partner of state
authorities. The Council of Europe, according to the Chair of the
Committee, defined the prioritisation of gender policy as the
reorganisation and evaluation of policy development processes so that the
gender perspective is included in all policies, at all levels, by all
actors involved in the decision-making process. “We are still far from the
gender equality policy focus at every stage of the decision-making. We
still have a lot of work to do,” said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze.
Vice-speaker Olena Kondratiuk noted that today the presence of women in
politics is still low compared to Europe (21% here versus 31% in EU
countries). Therefore, focus should be made on finding possibilities
to ensure quotas for women in the supervisory boards of enterprises and
the leadership of the Verkhovna Rada committees, launching a gender
examination of draft laws, so that they take into account the needs of
women. Women with temporary protection in the EU countries should also be
granted not only a right to vote, but also to run for office.
The first deputy Chairman of the Committee, Vadym Halaichuk, emphasised
the extreme importance of the topic of gender equality in various aspects
since the legislative initiatives previously adopted by the Parliament in
this area had a wide resonance, and this shows how sensitive this topic is
for Ukrainian society.
According to him, observance of formal obligations and a formalistic
approach does not guarantee the achievement of the declared result. There
is still a lot to work to do, in particular, in the context of the
legislative changes, including in the process of EU integration, and the
need to observe the gender balance of the state budget. “The focus of the
conference participants on specific problems and proposals for their
solution is a very good result of our today's panel Gender-specific topics
in Parliaments,” noted Vadym Halaichuk.
The EU Ambassador to Ukraine Katarína Mathernová noted that there is
no direct regulation of many aspects of ensuring gender equality in
European law. There is regulation of certain issues, but in general,
gender equality is a basic principle. And it is rather about the spirit,
and not about the letter of the law. The EU has 27 members, and extremely
different approaches to gender equality issues. Katarína Mathernová noted
that, on the one hand, the process of European integration is a driving
force and impetus for changes in matters of gender equality in Ukraine.
But on the other hand, how these issues will be implemented in practice,
how the gender lens will be applied in various areas during the formation
of various policies, also depends on Ukraine's internal efforts.
At the same time, there are directives related to gender issues, which
Ukraine will have to implement in its legislation. They regulate equal
pay, the participation of women in corporate boards, and the balance of
work and rest. “This is an important piece of legislation, but this
legislation does not fully regulate the issue. It is rather the spirit of
the law, the adoption of which largely depends on local traditions,
policies, and activities,” said the EU Ambassador to Ukraine. To help
prepare for the widest possible provision of gender equality, the EU
supports several projects in partnership with local authorities,
non-governmental and international organisations. Katarína Mathernová also
noted that during the war, the attitude towards minorities in Ukraine
improved. Discourses that seemed impossible three years ago have appeared
in society. “This is a good basis for the fully participation of women in
the process of making important, strategic decisions,” said Katarina
Maternova.